The mysteries of the kanakana and their declining numbers could soon be investigated by a proposed research centre in Murihiku.
Kanakana, or lamprey, have swum about the ocean, rivers and streams across the world for more than 360 million years.
They are a jawless eel-like fish with no bones that live their adult lives in the ocean parasitically by latching on to bigger fish before migrating back inland from August to October up the Waikawa and Mataura rivers to their spawning grounds upstream.
For Hokonui Rūnanga and iwi across the motu, kanakana have been a food source and the focus of many whakataukī (proverbs) and pūrākau (stories), but with changes to their environment, whānau have noticed their numbers dwindling.
Kanakana are under threat from habitat decline and unidentified disease, and have been classed as nationally vulnerable under the New Zealand Threat Classification System.
To combat their decline, Hokonui Rūnanga kaiārahi taiao Riki Parata will investigate the feasibility of a dedicated taonga species research centre, funded by Ngāi Tahu and the rūnanga.
“They predate the dinosaurs and haven’t evolved since then, and it’s only in the last 50 years that they’re starting to decline because of us,” Parata said.
Drawing on information learned from other indigenous communities in the United States, and matauranga Māori or cultural knowledge, Parata hoped the kaupapa Māori-led centre would be used to breed kanakana to replenish the populations in Murihiku as well as other sites across the motu.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity to step up and see if I can make this happen,” he said.
“We have been involved in plenty of kanakana research to date, but this is a whole new level.”
Parata said kōrero from kaumātua suggested the changes in water quality, land use practices, climate change, and barriers they faced returning to their spawning ground were likely causes of their decline.
Knowledge of their lives in the ocean would also be investigated to see if changes in the moana were contributing factors.
Whānau across Hokonui had been studying the changes in kanakana for decades, but having a dedicated space focused on protecting the taonga species was exciting, Hokonui Rūnanga manager Terry Nicholas said.
“Building intergenerational capability through innovative research and science is at the heart of what we have been looking to develop through our Murihiku Regeneration kaupapa.
“The establishment of Kanakana Research Ltd is another bold and positive step.”
If Parata was successful, work was likely to begin on the centre in 2025.